Justin Time

The Federal Liberal Party needs a big boost. This much is no secret. And this boost was provided by Justin Trudeau when in Montreal he announced his bid to seek the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada.

One day after that, on Wednesday night in Richmond, Trudeau`s rally drew a huge crowd of more than a thousand fans.

“Canadian politics is going to enter an interesting phase. This much is certain with the entry of Justin Trudeau,“ said former BC Premier, Ujjal Dosanjh, while speaking with The Voice.

`Justin knows his task is not going to be easy. But he is a very courageous person and the most important thing is that he connects with people,“ says Dosanjh.

Sukh Dhaliwal, former MP for Newton-North Delta, told The Voice with Justin Trudeau`s entry at least the Liberal Party “is back in the game“.

First of all Justin needs to become the leader of the Liberal Party. If observers and experts are to be believed that much seems certain.

And realistically speaking, for the Federal Liberal Party this should be a two-term project. In the next term the best they should hope is to become the second party.

“People who are saying that Justin is young and does not have the experience are quite wrong. At 40 you are not young. You have probably lived half your life. If I`m not wrong John Kennedy also became President of US around the age of 40,` says Dosanjh.

It will be challenging for Justin to shake off the image of being Trudeau Junior and assert his own style. His father was a prominent figure who in his time as the Prime Minister of Canada opened the doors for immigrants.

“Justin is well aware of that. He knows his father started that process and he understands and appreciates that South Asians are hard working and have achieved a lot of success after coming to Canada,“ says Dhaliwal.

In Richmond too, Justin Trudeeau spoke about the need for Canada to embrace its immigrants, saying “diversity is strength” to loud applause.

About 300 people of many ethnicities waved mini Canadian flags from a makeshift grandstand behind Trudeau as he spoke about his great-grandfather George James Sinclair’s journey from Scotland to BC.

Earlier, as the crowd waited for Trudeau to appear, many said they were there to see more than charisma.

Justin`s mother, Margaret Trudeau, greeted fans and posed for photos as she waited for her son to enter the auditorium in Richmond and take the podium.

Trudeau’s supporters in B.C. point to his West Coast roots that include the 1999-2001 period he taught at West Point Grey Academy, followed by a year at Sir Winston Churchill, a public secondary school in Vancouver. He also taught snowboarding in Whistler for several years and his family through his mother has deep BC roots.

“He might not come off so well in an intellectual showdown if there were one between Harper, himself and maybe even Mulcair. But he has a lot of personality,“ says Dosanjh.

But personality and charisma alone will not be enough to carry him through. Justin Trudeau will also need to put in a lot of hard work. And he is ready for that grind.

Like Dosanjh says, Canadian politics is about to enter an interesting phase.

It will be challenging for Justin to shake off the image of being Trudeau Junior and assert his own style. His father was a prominent figure who in his time as the Prime Minister of Canada opened the doors for immigrants.

“Justin is well aware of that. He knows his father started that process and he understands and appreciates that South Asians are hard working and have achieved a lot of success after coming to Canada,“ says Dhaliwal.

In Richmond too, Justin Trudeeau spoke about the need for Canada to embrace its immigrants, saying